When scientific studies require the use of human participants, the researchers performing the studies must be able to obtain participants. In the Internet age, the search for such participants has become simpler. As online research grows more ubiquitous, scientists of all segments are relying on crowdsourcing platforms to access study participants. The study itself is often conducted online as well. However, many researchers express concerns about the validity of studies conducted online. The concerns stem from the inability to adequately vet and monitor the participants remotely under the standard methods of conducting online studies.
In a brick and mortar laboratory, a researcher can verify the demographic profile (e.g., gender, age bracket, etc.) of participants and actively monitor participants to ensure that they remain focused, engaged, and on task during the entirety of their performance in the study. In online data collection, on the other hand, participants may make false claims about their identity and may be multitasking, minimally focused on the task, or altogether inattentive to the study they are taking. This may result in inaccurate and/or invalid results, which can be detrimental to the quality of the study.
Furthermore, it is important in many online arenas to ascertain certain qualities about participants. For example, a blog or forum that tailors to a certain group, e.g., a specific gender or racial/ethnic group, may be compromised if a fraudulent participant masquerades as someone from the group. The ability to monitor participant input and verify qualities, such as demographic characteristics, may help maintain the safety and integrity of the online forum.
For at least these reasons, it would be desirable to provide systems and methods for monitoring digital input. It would be further desirable for the systems and methods to assess and maintain the validity, accuracy and/or quality of the input.